Make a home safer and easier for an older person

Use this guide if you or an older relative are finding parts of the home harder to manage, or after a fall or hospital stay. Walk round the home together with a notepad, ideally in the evening when lighting problems are easier to spot, and involve the person who lives there in every decision.

Step by step

1. Walk the home and spot the risks

   Go room by room with the person who lives there and ask what feels difficult: getting out of a chair, reaching cupboards, the stairs at night or stepping into the bath. Look for trailing cables, loose rugs, clutter on stairs and poor lighting. Write down each problem with a possible fix and mark the ones that could cause a fall as the top priority. Respect their choices; the aim is independence, not taking over.